Good for Tyler Thigpen for directing four scoring drives Thursday night and rallying the Bills from a 28-7 deficit to a near victory over Detroit. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

Thigpen is the definition of mediocrity, and there’s no tangible reason why the Bills should keep him on the roster. We’ve seen what he can do, and it isn’t much. I’m no Tarvaris Jackson fan, either, but at least we don’t know the full story on him yet, and maybe there’s something that he has that will click with Chan Gailey and the Bills if there comes a time when he needs to play. With Thigpen, we know that’s not the case. He’s just inadequate, to be kind.

Also, Jackson is a good athlete, much like Vince Young, and that’s always a nice attribute to have as a quarterback these days. So, bye-bye Thiggy, it was nice knowing you.

That said, the Brad Smith groin injury may have saved Thigpen. If Smith is hurt, the Bills may keep four quarterbacks (including Smith) at the start, just in case, but to me that would be silly and overly cautious. Ryan Fitzpatrick has proven to be a durable player, so even if Smith is down for a little while, I’d fly without a net and just keep Jackson. Hey, if something drastic were to happen, I’m pretty sure Thigpen would be available to be re-signed.

- The new injured reserve rule where teams can bring back one player they put on IR may be an ideal way to keep Terrence McGee. Clearly, he’s not ready to play, and if the Bills really do think he has something left (I don’t, but no one else in the media seems to agree with me) when he can finally get healthy, then they should put him on IR with the intention of activating him later.

- I said in my last post that Marcus Easley still intrigues me and I think he’d be worth keeping. His performance Thursday night backed me up on that. And again, with the Smith injury, that might create a need to keep another wide receiver.

- Isn’t it odd that kickoff specialist John Potter’s streak of 10 straight touchbacks ended in a domed stadium? In fact, he had two returned kickoffs in Detroit, though both carried into the end zone, and the Bills tackled the return man inside the 20 each time. Overall Potter had 12 touchbacks in 14 kickoffs in the preseason, and I think the Bills would be nuts to let him go. He’s a valuable commodity and worth the roster spot. Plus, he’s insurance in case the aging Rian Lindell gets hurt again, which he did last year if you remember.

- I know it’s preseason, but was anyone impressed by the Bills’ so-called improved defense? The first-stringers allowed five touchdowns and a field goal in 15 possessions. And the backups were downright brutal. Pittsburgh and Detroit each rang up 38 points, and Minnesota had 22, then tacked on two defensive touchdowns late in that game. Let’s hope the Bills truly were doing nothing on defense, and this was no indication of how things will look once the season starts. Of course, their Week 1 opponent, the Jets, are saying the same thing about their offense which scored only one touchdown in four preseason games.

Tonight when the Bills meet the Lions in Detroit, we will get one last look at about 20 players who by Friday evening will be ex-Bills. Coach Chan Gailey has already said that about 85 percent of the roster has already been determined, and this game is merely on last evaluation tool to finalize things.

If I was Gailey, this is how my Bills roster would look come Friday night:

- QB (3) – Ryan Fitzpatrick, Tarvaris Jackson, Brad Smith. Fitz is the undeniable No. 1 and nothing will change that. If the Bills had any faith in Thigpen, they wouldn’t have thrown away a late-round draft pick to get Jackson, and then pay him about $2 million more than they were going to pay Vince Young before they shipped his sorry butt out of town.

- RB (3) – Fred Jackson, C.J. Spiller, Tashard Choice. Johnny White has shown nothing since he’s been with the team, so why bother keeping him? Choice is a veteran, he can do a variety of things, and because he played for Gailey at Georgia Tech, the coach has a history with him and confidence in what he can do.

- FB (1)- Corey McIntyre. He’s all they have at this position.

- WR (5) – Stevie Johnson, Donald Jones, David Nelson, T.J. Graham, and Derek Hagan, with Brad Smith on hand as a sixth WR. This is a tough cut for me because Ruvell Martin is a good special teamer, and Easley is such a curiosity. Easley hasn’t stood out at all in camp or the preseason, but there’s still untapped potential there, so I think he’ll end up on the practice squad because the Bills shouldn’t quit on him yet. If a team makes a claim, the Bills will have another decision to make – let him go, or recall him and cut Hagan.

- TE (3) – Scott Chandler, Lee Smith, Dorin Dickerson. Chandler is really the only guy who will get much playing time. Smith is a good blocker and that’s why he’ll make it. Dickerson is an interesting case. He has a lot of athletic ability, and he brings an H-back versatility to the team that I think is worth keeping on the roster. He struggled in the preseason, but I’d take him over Kevin Brock. Now, what I think will happen is Brock will make it, and Dickerson will be added to the practice squad so he can continue to learn how to play.

- OL (9) – Cordy Glenn, Andy Levitre, Eric Wood, Kraig Urbik, Erik Pears, Chad Rinehart, Chris Hairston, Zebrie Sanders, and Mark Asper. The first seven are locks, and for the final two spots, I’m going with Sanders and Asper, mainly because they were draft picks and the Bills – as most teams – hate to cut their draft picks. Now, Colin Brown might be logical because he has more center experience than Asper, so I think Gailey will probably do that and send Asper – who had a tough time in camp – to the practice squad.

- DL (9) – Mario Williams, Marcell Dareus, Kyle Williams, Mark Anderson, Chris Kelsay, Spencer Johnson, Dwan Edwards, Kyle Moore, and Alex Carrington. I would keep nine here because Dave Wannstedt wants to play a full rotation, and you need bodies for that. I’m not a big fan of Johnson or Edwards, but I’d keep them because they have experience, and because guys like Robert Eddins, Kellen Heard and Jarron Gilbert just aren’t good enough. Moore and Carrington haven’t been great either, but I’d stick with them.

- LB (7) – Nick Barnett, Kelvin Sheppard, Arthur Moats, Kirk Morrison, Bryan Scott, Tank Carder, and Nigel Bradham. In a 4-3 defense you don’t need as many linebackers and it’s a good thing because this is not a strong group. It would not shock me if Morrison is cut in favor of Scott McKillop.

- DB (9) – Stephon Gilmore, Aaron Williams, Jairus Byrd, George Wilson, Da’Norris Searcy, Leodis McKelvin, Justin Rogers, Ron Brooks and Delano Howell. I’m sorry, I just can’t keep Terrence McGee. I think he’s shot, and even if he can play, he’s not the same player he was, and he’s a high-risk to sustain another injury. The Bills have five pretty good corners without McGee. I’d only keep Howell because he’s a safety, and they need another backup besides Searcy.

- ST (4) – Rian Lindell, Brian Moorman, John Potter, Garrison Sanborn. That’s right, I’m keeping Potter as the kickoff specialist. The guy is 100 percent on touchbacks, and that’s something you can’t pass up. Those touchbacks alleviate the need to keep a guy at another position who will only play on special teams, because the kickoff coverage unit will pretty much just be jogging downfield for no reason with Potter kicking.

The Bills take on the Steelers tonight at Ralph Wilson Stadium in the third preseason game for both teams. Follow Sal Maiorana and the Buffalo Bills for the updates throughout the game. The game begins at 7 p.m.

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For the best and most recent up-to-date coverage of the Buffalo Bills, the Bills Eye blog will be the place to be. Our coverage will be led by beat writer Sal Maiorana, who has covered the Bills full-time since 1990, and he will provide live updates throughout the season from training camp at St. John Fisher College, from practices at One Bills Drive, and from all games home and away. Sports columnist Leo Roth will also add perspective he has gleaned from more than 25 years of covering the team, and staff writers and editors including Steve Bradley, Mark Dwyer, Scott Norris and Todd Clausen will add content whenever news breaks via posts or tweets.